Mr. SITGREAVES said, it is a principle as well settled as any in the law of
nations, that, when a nation has received aggressions from another nation, it
is competent for the injured nation to pursue its remedy by reprisal before a
declaration of war takes place; and these reprisals shall be perfectly
warrantable whilst they are commensurate only with the injuries received; and
are not, under such circumstances, justifiable cause of war. It is even clear
that these reprisals may be made during the pendency of a negotiation, and
cannot, according to the law of nations, be justifiable ground for the rupture
of any such negotiations.